Darrell Issa Says He Would've Advised Clinton If She Asked

In an apparent attempt to widen his appeal to voters as he faces his first serious challenge to being reelected after 15 years in the House of Representatives, Californian Republican Darrell Issa has said he would have been willing to serve as an adviser to Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton if she had asked, Politico reports.

Issa, who is a national security adviser for Donald Trump's campaign and has been one of President Barack Obama's fiercest critics in the House, appeared to try the same tactic when — after the tape of Trump making lewd comments about women was released — praised Obama for signing a sexual assault victims bill the congressman co-sponsored.

Obama called the moved "the definition of chutzpah" and "shameless," provoking another clash with the president.

Doug Applegate, Issa's Democratic challenger, told Politico that "President Obama got it right that Darrell was Trump before Trump."

Issa's latest comment about Clinton came just before the FBI announced over the weekend it was reopening the investigation into her unsecured email server.

There have been contradictory polls recently about who is winning the race for California's 49th district, but Roll Call reports that what is clear is that experts are no longer declaring it a certain Republican victory, which is already a vast change in a district that the eight-term congressman has won by at least 16 percentage points in all of his elections.

Applegate, who is a trial lawyer and a retired Marine colonel in a district that has a major Marine base, told Politico, "The reason that people talk to me on the street is that they're tired of not having someone who is a representative in the true sense of the word," contending that Issa has used most of his time worrying about his national profile rather than the concerns of the constituents.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has sensed the opportunity to oust Issa and has funneled $2.1 million worth of airtime to help Applegate, The Hill reports.

One factor boosting Applegate's chances, in addition to the anti-Trump sentiment, is the increasing weight in the district of Hispanic voters, who have been largely upset by comments made by the Republican presidential candidate about the community.

The Democrats have launched efforts to increase their level of participation in the election.